The Most Dangerous Game
by Panthergirl
Summary: There is a secret lurking in the dragon worlds. Darkness has taken over the land. This time, it looks like not even Spyro can defeat it.
1. What's up with Spyro?

_**For all you readers who have been reading this story since the beginning, I'd just like to say thanks! And now, as you can see, I've re-written this story with a different plot and a different theme. This new version takes place in the worlds in AHT, if I didn't do a good job of making it obvious.**_

**

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Years ago, Spyro the dragon set out on his first quest ever. He freed all the dragon elders and defeated Gnasty Gnorc. With that first adventure as a starting point, he went on to accomplish great things. An unexpected journey to a place called Avalar caused him to meet up with several new friends, as well as save a world that cried out for help. He traveled to the other side of the worlds, the Forgotten Worlds, and faced an evil sorceress.**

**But now something has gone horribly wrong. **

**It started on the fateful afternoon of the Year of the Dragon ceremony. The day that everything Spyro knew and loved was completely destroyed. **

**No one suspected a thing. No one had their guard up when it happened. It all happened so fast that even the most powerful dragon elder was powerless to stop it. Within a few hours, the dragon worlds were doomed forever.**

**Now, despite the fact that the worlds are still bright and colorful, they may as well be dark and gray, for that is all the residents of the lands ever see. Their every move is watched closely, minimizing the chances of rebellion or escape. All seems hopeless now. Unless someone from the outside were to step in. **

**Then, they might have a chance at defeating the evil that has settled in this world.**

* * *

"Are we there yet?" Sabina whined, bouncing up and down on her bus seat. Her brother, Akiro, rolled his eyes.

"We'll get there when we get there! Now get off of the window. You're not one of those suction cup plush thingies."

Sabina, who had attached herself to the window while he was talking, got down. "Sorry," she mumbled. She then took a moment to pull a piece of lint off of her white fur. "I can't wait to get to the dragon worlds. We'll get to meet Spyro!"

"Yeah! That'll be something to tell the guys at school about." Akiro pulled out two autograph books from under his seat. "Think he'll sign our books?" he asked.

Sabina grabbed a book from him and started flipping pages. "Of course! He'll sign it right here between Cassia's signature and the Easter Bunny's!" Suddenly, she noticed the similarity of the two signatures. "Hey!"

"You just noticed that?"

"No! Uh... do you think Spyro will like us?"

"We're two part wolf, part lion, part dragon things," Akiro said, leaning back in his seat. "What's not to like?"

"The dragon part doesn't even show!"

"Then do you wanna shave off all you fur before we get there?" her brother teased. "We're the only ones on the bus beside driver, go ahead!"

She slammed her book shut. "Ha ha, very funny."

"Who says I'm joking?"

"Why you little..."

"Dragon Worlds!" announced the bus driver. "All passengers going to the Dragon Worlds please exit now."

The two siblings stopped their fight. "Woo-hoo! We're here!" Sabina exclaimed. They pulled their suitcases off of the luggage rack and hurried off the bus. No sooner had they stepped off of it, when the bus pulled away very quickly, leaving them coughing in a cloud of dust.

"Wonder what's his hurry." Akiro said.

"This isn't a bus stop!" Sabina exclaimed. "It's an old lemonade stand with the words 'bus stop' spray painted on it in the middle of a desert!"

"Maybe that explains why we had a hard time finding a bus to come down here," mused Akiro. "So, where's the Dragon Worlds?"

"Maybe it's through this portal labeled "The Dragon Worlds." Sabina pointed to a large portal right beside the lemonade stand.

"Eh, could be."

They stepped through the portal and found themselves in their destination. It was a beautiful place. The grass was as green as Akiro's fur, and there were some interesting buildings around. Several sheep ran around an open grassy area. Across the meadow-like area was some kind of store, with a fat bear in a fez standing in front of it. "Wow! It's so...colorful! Dang, those colors are bright." Akiro put on his sunglasses. "Now, let's see if we can find Spyro."

"Look! There's a dragon over there. Let's ask her." Sabina pointed out. The two odd characters walked over to the dragon. "Excuse me! Is Spyro around here anywhere?"

The pink dragon blushed at the mention of Spyro's name. "Oh! Well, I think I saw him over by the bridge." She then stood there smiling, as if posing for a glamour shot. Akiro cocked his head.

"Um...can you tell us where the bridge is?" he asked slowly.

"Through that tunnel." said the dragon. She giggled and skipped off.

"Freak." Akiro muttered. "Let's go!" Sabina led the way across the grass and to a tunnel through the hills. It wasn't very long, and soon they were in the daylight again. Straight ahead of them was a deep abyss, with a large bridge going across it. Standing on that bridge was the familiar purple dragon known as Spyro!

"Look! There he is!" Sabina whispered in excitement. They ran across the bridge to him.

"Hi Spyro!" she called out.

"Um, do I know you?" Spyro asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No," Akrio replied, "But we were on vacation and thought we'd get your autograph while we're here!"

"Ah. Autographs. So do you have a piece of paper or do I have to write it in the dirt or what?" the dragon asked impatiently.

_Geez. You'd think for a hero he'd be a little less snappish. _Thought Sabina_. Ah, well. He's probably having a rough day._

Akiro handed him their autograph books. "Okay, signature." Spyro said, flipping through the book. "The Easter Bunny?" he scoffed. Sabina pouted.

"He signed it years ago!"

"Sure. Ya got a pen?" Spyro leaned casually against the railing. Sabina handed him one. "Thanks. Allrighty. I'm signin' away. So you're on vacation?" He took his time, making his name look perfect.

"Yeah."

" And you heard of my totally awesome-ness and came down here, eh?"

Sabina was getting a little more upset over the dragon's arrogance. The newspaper articles she'd read made him sound much friendlier.

"_Help me!_"

"Huh?" asked Akiro. Spyro just stood there, still writing, and still in his cocky pose. Then Akiro noticed that Spyro's lips were open slightly and his teeth were clenched together. "_Help me!" _the dragon said again.

"Help you what?" asked Sabina.

"_Don't act like I'm talking to you." _Spyro instructed. "_I can't break character while she's watching."_

"Who's watching?"

"_Ember."_ Spyro hissed, motioning to the right slightly with his head. Akiro glanced over in the direction they had come and saw the pink dragon watching them from behind a tree. "_Don't look at her!" _Akiro quickly averted his eyes. Spyro had finished signing one book and started working on the other.

"What should we do?" Sabina whispered.

"_Find Hunter. Give him the message I'm writing in you books." _Spyro gave Sabina her book back. "_In your book, it's every three words." _he hurried to finish writing in Akiro's, "_And in yours it's every five words. Hurry and find him! But don't make it obvious!"_

Spyro handed Akiro his book. _"Please hurry!" _He whispered one last time before switching back to his previous personality. "There ya go, guys!"

"Um, thanks." Akiro said.

"No prob! Well, I gotta go do stuff. Later." and with that, the dragonswaggered off. The two siblings just stood there, staring. "What was that all about?" asked Sabina.

_

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**Well? Any thoughts, words, comments, or inputs? Go ahead and tell me! Flames, I ignore. Constructive criticism, I accept.**_


	2. What's up with Hunter?

_**Chapter two! I'm finally getting somewhere! Forgot to put a disclaimer on the first chapter, so I'll do it here. Akiro and Sabina are © to me. All other characters, (Spyro, Hunter, Ember, etc.) and other Spyro-related characters are © to VU games, or whoever it is that owns them now.**_

_**I own nothing that is copyrighted to people who are not me, basically.

* * *

**_

"Well, I guess we should see what he wrote." Akiro suggested. "But first, let's go someplace private." He took another glance at Ember, who was still hiding behind the tree. The pink dragon saw them looking at her and ducked out of view.

"Let's go in that store we saw earlier!" Sabina suggested. "It looked pretty vacant!"

She led the way as they hurried back through the tunnel and into the open grassy area. "There's the store!" she pointed. The far bear was still standing in front of it. He seemed pleased to see them as they approached.

"Hello! What can I sell to you today?" the bear asked them in a funny accent.

"Nice fez!" Sabina said. "We're just gonna go look around, okay?"

"By all means, go right ahead! I'll be waiting right here when you're ready to buy!"

Akiro and Sabina hurried into the store. It was a small place, with lots of shelves and boxes lining the wall. "Okay, what did he write?" Akiro whispered, opening their books.

In Sabina's book, Spyro had written:

_Nice to meet you, and me and all in here, in the dragon worlds. Swamp is fun this year._

_It is also very important to have fun!_

_---Spyro the Dragon_

In Akiro's book, he had written

_So what's up? When I fight, it helps to think of happy things. So I'm gonna go and be on the skate park 'till to. You can come or something._

_--- Spyro the Dragon _

"Dang, that's a weird signature." Sabina said. "So is this 'every three words' thing a code."

"Shh!" Akiro hushed her. "Start counting words." They sat in silence for a moment, counting out every third or fifth word.

"Mine reads ' Meet me in the swamp this is important." Sabina finally said.

"I think you mean "Meet me in the swamp! This is important!" Akiro said. "Two sentences. This one here reads 'I think I'm on to something." The siblings considered this message for a while. "So, Spyro needs to tell Hunter something that's very important. Wonder what it is." Sabina stood up.

"We'd better tell Hunter then." Akiro said.

Sabina started for the door and then stopped. "Shoot! That bear will be expecting us to buy something." Akiro looked around the room.

"Look! There's a window back there." he pointed at an open window in the back of the store. "We'll just slip through that!"

"But won't the bear notice?"

"He looks pretty dumb. I give him three hours to realize we're gone."

"You're on!"

They went to the back of the store, and Akiro cupped his hands to make a small step. After helping Sabina out, he jumped and grabbed the windowsill and pulled himself up. Sabina peered around the corner of the building to see the bear still standing there. "Loser." she giggled.

"Why don't we go to that bridge again?" she asked Akiro. "Maybe we'll think of something there." They hurried through the tunnel and found themselves standing at the edge of the chasm.

"Now, if I were Hunter, where would I be?" Akiro thought aloud. He then saw a gate in the wall off to the side of the bridge. "Let's try there." he said, pulling Sabina along. They ran over and just stared at the gate.

"How do we open it?" wondered Akiro.

"Maybe this does something!" Sabina exclaimed, jumping onto a button in the ground. The iron bars sank into the ground. "That works." said Akiro.

They walked though the opening, the gate popping up behind them, and into a cave. "Well, hello there!" came a voice. The twins turned to see an old, green scaled dragon standing in the middle of the cave-like room. "What brings two young folks like yourself here?"

"We're..." Akiro began.

"...lost." finished Sabina.

"Are you a Dragon Elder?" Akiro asked. The dragon nodded. Akiro was disappointed. Dragon Elders were supposed to be strong and tough! Not skinny and old!

"Maybe I can help you find where you're going." the dragon suggested. Akiro started pulling Sabina to the door. "Oh, we were just leaving!" he said.

"I'm afraid that door doesn't open from the inside. But you can go through there." the Elder pointed at a large hole in the wall, just above several high steps. With a brief series of pushing and pulling each other up, the twosome made it to the top. "Well, it was nice talking to you. Bye!" called Sabina as they started out the hole.

"Careful! There aren't any stairs..."

"Yaaahhhh!"

"...on that side."

Fortunately, Akiro broke Sabina's fall. Unfortunately, the ground broke Akiro's fall. "Get off me!" he yelped, pushing his sister aside.

"Dudes! You guys okay?" came a voice. They looked up to see Hunter hurrying towards them.

"Guess he found us." Sabina muttered. "Hey, Hunter! We've got something to tell you!"

A red dragon walked out of a doorway beside them. "You know Hunter?" he asked suspiciously. Hunter shrugged. "Hey, they probably heard of my awesome moves. Dudes, this is Flame. Flame...dudes." he said, introducing them.

"Yeah, how ya doin'?" Flame said hastily. "Haven't seen you guys around before. Where ya from?"

"The place with all the snow!" Sabina blurted. Akiro rolled his eyes. Flame looked both of them over. "I don't think you..."

Suddenly, they all heard a loud boom. Flame closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them and said, "I'm gonna go see what the Professor's messing up. Later." The dragon went back through the doorway and was gone.

Hunter, still maintaining his pose, whispered "_So what do you need to tell me?" _

Akiro, following the cheetah's example, said, "_A message from Spyro. He says to meet him in the swamp."_

"_Yeah. It's something important."_

Hunter looked around, to see if they were being watched. "_Thanks. Hey, where are you guys really from?"_

"'_Nother world." _Sabina stated.

"_Hmm."_ Hunter fiddled with his bowstring expertly. "_As in, not from here?" _The two creatures nodded. "_In that case, why don't you meet us there too? You guys might be useful..."_

Hunter turned and walked away. Akiro and Sabina started following him, but he stopped. "_Don't follow me. We can't be seen arriving together. Oh, and if anyone asks, I was giving you guys pointers on skateboarding."_

With that, he left. Sabina looked at her brother. "So now we've gotta find something else!"

"Geeze, talk about a vacation." Akiro muttered. "Say, do you get the feeling that something's going on around here?"

"What was your first clue?" Sabina replied sarcastically as they started walking.

_

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**Another chapter down! Now, before you read any of the upcoming chapters, I have to tell you that there WILL be spoilers for 'A Hero's Tail', so if you don't like surprises being ruined you'd better finish that game before you read. Also, this story only deals with the settings in all the PS1 and PS2 games only. So anything that happened in the Gameboy games won't be mentioned. I'm telling you this because it'll be an important thing to consider later on.**_


	3. A quick mission

**Chapter three, ready to roll!**

**First, let me just say that yes, Ember and Flame are evil. Also, coming up in either this chapter or another chapter, we'll learn exactly what has happened to the Dragon Worlds.**

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Akiro and Sabina walked through the dark tunnel. "Are you sure it's this way?" Sabina asked. "I mean, maybe there's a...less...scary...path to the swamp."

"We've tried every other direction." her brother reassured her. "Besides, this tunnel is starting to look very swamp-ish to me!" They turned a corner and saw the end of the passageway. Through it, they could see part of the swamp.

"Now we have to find where Hunter is meeting Spyro." Akiro whispered. "Keep your eyes open. The way those two were acting, they'll probably be in the best hiding spot around."

As they came out of the tunnel, they began looking around. "Um, Akiro?" Sabina pointed. "We don't need to look any further. There they are."

Akiro did a double take. Spyro and Hunter were talking in the clearest, most open area in the swamp! They weren't even bothering to disguise themselves or anything! Akiro shook his head. "Okay, maybe it's not that important." he said. They walked over to join the secret meeting. Spyro saw them coming and began acting cocky and important, like he had on the bridge.

"So, what's this meeting about?" Sabina whispered.

"Glad you came." said Hunter. Spyro briefly dropped his confident veneer. "Hunter!" he exclaimed as loudly as he could while still whispering. "You told them to meet us here!"

"Yeah."

"Why!"

"Because they're not from here." Hunter replied confidently. "They're from another world. You know what that means."

"Yes, I know that. But that also means that they can't be seen with us too often."

"Will either of you _please_ tell us what's going on?" Akiro demanded. "And if this meeting is supposed to be so secret, then why are you out in the open."

Spyro groaned quietly. "Ah, well. You're already here. See, if we had decided to hide in some secret cave or room, someone could easily be standing outside listening to every word. Or they could barge right in and catch us breaking character." Akiro and Sabina listened intently. "Out here, we can easily see anyone coming towards us. Plus, because this space is so clear, there's nowhere for anyone to hide nearby and listen in."

"But couldn't your voice travel?" Sabina asked.

"Not very far." said Hunter. "We're whispering, aren't we?"

"Yeah. Now as for you two," Spyro turned to the twins. "Hunter and I have been making a few plans. But we need someone to get us a few items before we can start. That's where you guys come in."

"Uh-huh." Akiro muttered. "But why us?"

"You guys are from another world." Hunter repeated. "And that means that you don't have trackers stuck in your body."

"Huh?"

Spyro looked around before answering. "You don't, we do. All you need to do is get us a few things from the store. See, the trackers monitor where we go. So we can't go to certain places without being tailed. Also, Moneybags is paid to report whatever anyone from the Dragon Worlds buys."

Sabina scratched her head. "So, that's that bear's name I assume. But wouldn't he help you out if he knew how important this is?"

"That bear may be in the same fix as us, but as long as he gets gems he's happy." Hunter growled. "We'd go get the items ourselves, but like we've already told you, we can't."

"So will you do it?" Spyro asked. "Please?"

"Well...I guess we could." Akiro decided. "What do you need?"

"Thanks! We need a spool of copper wire, two D-size batteries, three pairs of mini alligator clips, a welding torch, and the designs for a static electricity generator."

Sabina blinked. "Wow. That's a lot of stuff. Could you write that down?" Spyro shook his head.

"Can't, that would leave evidence. Oh, and don't buy the designs. Copy them instead and sneak them out."

Spyro and Hunter started to leave in different directions. "Wait!" called Akiro. "Can you at least tell us why you need that stuff?"

"Maybe later. Right now, you'll have to accept 'what you don't know, can't hurt you' as an answer." Spyro replied.

"Where will you be?"

"Don't worry. We'll find you."

* * *

Akiro pushed his sister back through the window of Moneybags' store. "Think he noticed we were gone?" he asked as he climbed through too.

"Not a chance. Now, lets see... we need batteries, copper wire, a welding torch." Sabina muttered to herself, looking around the store for those items. "I'll find the stuff, you find the design thingy and copy it."

She and Akiro split up and searched around the building. Akiro hunted through a large shelf of various books and papers. "Geeze, he's got _everything _here. Old phone books, new phone books, maps, history books..."

Sabina had already found the batteries. "You're looking for blueprints of whatever it is , remember?" She picked up some alligator clips and a roll of copper wire. "Okay, what was that last thing we needed?"

"Welding torch." Akiro's voice echoed inside a barrel he was looking through. "Hey, I think I found the designs!" He pulled out a rolled up piece of paper and unfurled it. "Yep. These look like it. Now, to copy it. Where's a Xerox machine when you need one?"

"There's an old one over there." Sabina pointed. Akiro walked over to the machine and began making a copy of the plans. Unfortunately, the machine made a loud noise as it worked, catching the attention of Moneybags.

"Hey! Quit messing around with that copy machine unless you're going to buy it!"

"Dang! We need a cover!" Akiro exclaimed. Sabina, thinking quickly, pushed the paper off the glass, shoved Akiro's face down onto the glass, and pressed the start button several times. Now Xeroxes of Akiro's face were sliding into the paper tray, covering up the exposed schematics. Moneybags waddled in and glanced down at the papers.

"Huh! Kids. Now, what will you be buying today?"

"This junk." Sabina said bluntly, holding up the supplies she was holding. "And do you have a welding torch?"

"Why, yes! Right here!" the bear opened up a box and pulled out the torch. "Now, let's see...all those items plus those photocopies brings us up to the amount of...nine thousand seventy-five gems!"

"Um...we only have dollars. What's the exchange rate?"

"In that case, it's ninety-seven fifty."

"Ah..." Sabina paused. "Do you take checks?"

"Why, certainly!"

"Okay! Just a moment..." Sabina pulled out her checkbook and wrote out a check. Handing it to Moneybags, she and Akiro began walking to the door. The bear turned to head to his back room when he heard them snickering.

"Why are you laughing? Is this check going to bounce?"

"No! Of course not!" Sabina assured him. She turned to leave again and muttered under her breath, "Sucker."

"Why did you call me a sucker? Are you saying I'm gullible?" Moneybags demanded.

"No, of course you're not...look! Four thousand gems!"

"Where!" Moneybags turned around to look. Seeing nothing he turned back to the two. "I don't see..."

There was no one there.

"Now where did they go?"

Akiro and Sabina laughed to themselves as they wandered through the area. "Oh, man! That was a good one! 'Course, you'll be in trouble when that check bounces."

"Nah. I signed it as what's-her-name...that pink dragon..."

"Ember?"

"Yeah!"

They wandered around the world for a little while, until they found themselves inside another building. "This looks like a nursery." Akiro observed.

"Good! You got the stuff!" They turned around to see Spyro coming towards them, carrying a toolbox. "Hunter will be here in a minute, can both of you stand outside the doors and keep watch? We'll let you in on a little more when we're done building this."

"Sure!" Akiro and Sabina each stood outside a door.

"Let me know if anyone comes." the dragon instructed. "And especially tell me if it's Ember or Flame!"

_**

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In the next chapter, we'll learn a little more about what's going on, and maybe even who's behind it all!**_


	4. Him

_**(Ember and Flame are evil! For most of you, that's a good thing and/or your suspicions confirmed. But, unfortunately, neither of them are behind this. You all know who it is, you just might not realize it yet.)**_

* * *

Hunter had arrived with a toolbox, and he and Spyro were almost done building whatever it was they were working on. "Tighten that screw." Spyro instructed as he fastened the batteries into place. "There!" Hunter said, stepping back. Together, they had built a small device that looked like a remote control attached to a speaker with an antenna sticking out of it.

"Is that a static electricity generator?" asked Sabina. Hunter shook his head. "Nah, only part of it is. Let's see if it works."

"You go first." said Spyro. Hunter took a few paces back and stood with his arms out. Spyro pointed the speaker towards him and turned a dial on the gadget. It began to hum softly. Spyro then flipped a switch and the device shot out a yellow light at Hunter. After a few seconds, the light went off and the device went silent. Several small disks fell from Hunter's body.

"It worked!" Spyro exclaimed. "Now do me!"

Hunter turned the device on Spyro, and several disks fell from the dragon's body as well. "What are those?" Akiro asked, picking up one of the disks.

"Trackers." said Spyro. "The gadget not only made them let go of us, but it also confused them."

"How?"

"They still send out signals as to where we are, but that's not really where we are." he explained. "We'll be one place, and the signal will come from another." Spyro picked up all the little trackers, walked out the door, and threw them in the river. "Now come on you three, let's go to the storm shelter."

"Yes!" Hunter pumped his fist in the air.

Akiro and Sabina looked at each other. "Okay, but why do you want us to come with you?" asked Akiro.

"Because you know too much." Hunter replied. He laughed at their worried looks. "No, it's not anything like that! We just don't want you guys getting caught by the wrong people."

"Ah..."

"Okay, now we're going to have to split up and get there in intervals." Spyro said. "We may not be tracked, but they could still be watching. I'll go first, Akiro will follow, and then Hunter will come followed by Sabina."

Spyro took off. "What's this storm shelter we're going to?"

"It's a place made by the Dragon Elders for everyone to go in case some huge storm hits." He said. "Spyro and I think that it's the only place in the Dragon Worlds that wasn't affected by the change."

"What was the change?" asked Akiro.

"I'll tell you later. You better follow Spyro before he gets too far away."

Akiro looked out and saw that Spyro was turning a corner. He waved to the others and started walking. "See ya in a few!"

* * *

Ember sat in a chair in Red's old lab. Ever since the dragon had been defeated, she and the others had moved into the place. It was a lot roomier than their old hideout, and much more technologically advanced. She sat in front of a wall of computer monitors and TV screens, watching the world. The pink dragon pressed a few buttons on the computer and entered in a password.

The biggest screen switched from a view of the bridge to a green tracking screen. There were little yellow dots all over the screen, but two red ones in different parts of the worlds stuck out the most. The dots representing Spyro and Hunter.

Suddenly, Ember heard a whooshing noise. The doors to the room were opening. "Hello, Flame." she said, not taking her gaze from the screen. Flame walked into the room and sat down at the chair beside hers. "Have you heard anything about two visitors to the realms?"

"No, not really. What do they look like?"

"Imagine a wolf's upper body and a lion's lower body." Flame described. "One of them was green and the other was white."

Ember paused. "Yes...I saw them. They wanted to know where Spyro was!"

"Really? did they say anything else?" the red dragon was eager to know. Ember thought for a while.

"No, not much else. They looked like tourists. Probably wanted a photo or an autograph."

"Ember, there haven't been tourists here in two years! Those two have obviously been called in to..."

Ember huffed and went back to working at the computer. " No, you're wrong. Look, I've got Spyro and Hunter on the radar right now!" she pointed a claw at the two red dots. "See? We've still got them."

"Turn on the cameras."

Ember growled at Flame, and then pulled up the views on two cameras. One in the Cloudy Domain, and one in the Ice Citadel. "Ha! There's nothing there!"

"They could just be out of frame."

"Spyro just went from the Cloudy Domain to Crocovile Swamp. There's no way he could have gotten there that fast!" Flame sat back in the chair and smirked. Ember gaped at the radar, then back at the cameras, them back at the radar. Her eyes glowed yellow and she glared at the screen. "Why, that little..." she growled. Ember stood up in her chair, made a fist, and punched one of the camera screens as hard as she could. Flame gasped and ducked as a shower of broken glass and sparks came his way.

"You idiot! You've just destroyed the monitor watching the bridge in the Dragon Kingdom! We've got to replace that thing before the boss notices!"

Ember brushed some glass and blood off her claws. "Sorry." she muttered. "I think the boss will care less about the broken screen when he finds out that those two have awakened!"

* * *

"It needs a little work, but it'll do." Spyro said as they stood in the main room of the storm shelter. It was a large, open space, with many other doorways in it. Lining the walls were various candles and torches, all unlit. Several large light fixtures hung from the ceiling as well. Above, tree roots protruded from the roof. Scattered in clusters about the room were lots of crates of different shapes and sizes. A good layer of dust covered everything. Hunter sneezed, creating a little cloud of dust.

"A little work? We'll be cleaning up for months!"

"Calm down, Hunter." Spyro said. He turned to the twins. "Sorry about all this, guys. I guess we're kinda ruining your vacation time."

"Nah, it's okay." Akiro replied. "Besides, I think we're better off with you guys anyway. So, will you at least tell us what's going on?"

Spyro walked around the room, lighting a few torches. "Well, okay. You're already in this now. First let's find a place a little further from the door." he led them all through the closest doorway. They were now standing in what looked like a kitchen. Hunter sat down at the table. "So, here's how it went."

They waited for him to continue.

"Well?" asked Sabina.

"Uh...actually I thought Spyro was going to continue that sentence."

Spyro grinned and shook his head. "Hunter, I can't tell you how much I've missed the old you. So guys, do you know about the Year of the Dragon ceremony?" Akiro and Sabina nodded, and Spyro went on. "Well, it was two years ago. I had just defeated the Sorceress and we were all having a great time and everything, and then _he_ showed up."

"Who's he?" asked Sabina.

"Ugh. He's a jerk, a maniac, a completely psychotic...ugh. Unfortunately, he was also very powerful. He just took over like that," Spyro snapped his fingers." and the worst part was that there was nothing anyone could do about it. Things really went downhill from there. First, he went and 'redecorated' the Dragon Worlds."

"Who was his inspiration, Dr. Seuss?" Akiro muttered. Sabina though for a second.

"Um, if he redecorated the worlds, then how come this storm shelter hasn't been changed?"

"Oh," Hunter explained, "The Elders cast so many kinds of protective spells on this thing that it remained hidden and...what's the word...invulnerable to attacks."

"Then he got really controlling." Spyro continued. "I mean _really_ controlling. He hypnotized all he could into thinking that everything was fine. Those he couldn't, he imprisoned until he could. A few of our friends couldn't be hypnotized. Elora was one of them." Spyro sat down.

Sabina joined him at the table. "Aw, I'm sorry."

"Thanks. Well, the rest of us got the full effect of it. But something happened during that, and I don't know if he planned this or not, but we were aware that we were hypnotized. We did whatever he told us, but we were aware of exactly what was going on. It was awful. Nothing felt right! It was even worse when Ripto stole all of the dragonflies. He did something to Ripto's spell that made the dragonflies just scatter everywhere! Then, I think he messed up their little minds, because they kept running away from me."

Akiro pulled up a chair himself. "But if the dragonflies are companions to the dragons, why would they run away. Spyro shrugged and continued.

"I don't know. At least it didn't take too long to get that solved. After that, things went from bad to worse. About a year later, Bianca came out of her 'trance'. She then made a big mistake by celebrating and trying to free the rest of us. They caught her and took her away too. Hunter and I couldn't do anything because we were still powerless and Red had attacked. Several of the Dragon Elders had been released, but I have no idea what kind of spell they were under. Their looks had been changed drastically, and they acted stranger than anyone. Then, two people were put here to make sure everyone else was still under their control."

"Ember and Flame!" Sabina exclaimed.

"Exactly!" Spyro nodded. "That's why we were acting funny when you met us. Man, things got worse then. Nothing made any sense! Everything just felt all wrong, and I just kept messing up. I'd charge into something that I was intending to flame and vice versa. Right after I had defeated Red, Hunter and I were 'freed'. Sure, we were thrilled, but we could only continue to pretend that we were still hypnotized. Now, thanks to you guys, we can finally put this plan we've been working on into action."

Akiro stood up. "Great! What's the plan?"

"We're going to break into the dungeons tonight and free a few friends!"

Sabina smiled. "We'd be happy to help! Wait, you never mentioned this guy's name."

"Oh, yeah. It's Vokrath Uragyth." Hunter said. Sabina stared at him.

"You're joking, right?" she asked. "Because that's an awfully weird name."

Spyro was rummaging around in the drawers in the kitchen now, and he found a pencil and a piece of paper. "Okay, here's what we'll do."

* * *

Flame walked down the corridor. The gnorcs could tell that he wasn't in a very good mood, and were staying well out of his way.

"Stupid intruders." he muttered. "Where's that guy in charge of Transportation? He said he'd destroyed all the portals!" Flame counted off doors as he stormed down the hallway. "Eleven...twelve...thirteen!" He head-butted the door open. In the room were a row of file cabinets, several computers, and a shrimpy-looking gnorc who was wielding a bow and arrow. He was using the arrows to play darts.

"You!" Flame snapped, pointing at the gnorc. "You said you destroyed _all_ of the portals!"

"B-but I did!" the gnorc replied shakily. Flame slapped him hard across the face, leaving three long, deep scratches.

"Liar! You left one in the Dragon Kingdom, and _two outsiders have_ _gotten in!_" the dragon grabbed the gnorc by his shirt. "Go take care of it, _now!_" he hissed menacingly. Flame pushed the gnorc to the ground and let go of him.

"W-what about t-the outsiders?"

"Worry about what will happen to you if that portal isn't gone within the hour."

**

* * *

Well, I'm sure that by now some of you have figured out the significance of the name Vokrath Uragyth. But, I'm sure there are some that don't get it at all. So if you know, please don't blurt it in a review.**

_**Also, important message to those of you who hate Ember: Thanks for your support.**_


	5. Escape!

Spyro opened another crate. "Hunter, I've found some more arrows." he called. Hunter walked over to the crate.

Akiro kept reading over the plan that Spyro had written down. "No, really, _we're_ the distraction?" he asked. Spyro nodded.

"Hunter and I have to get in unnoticed. All you guys have to do is get the attention of as many guards as you can. The more gnorcs that are out there trying to deal with you guys, the easier it'll me for me and Hunter to sneak in and out."

"Yeah, but..." Sabina began.

"Look, if it gets too dangerous to hang around, you guys can run for it. I'll even find you a map of the place and show you all the ways out."

The two finally agreed. "Good." said Spyro. "Now help us look through all these crates and get the place cleaned up a little. Nighttime's still several hours away."

So they spent the afternoon unpacking the boxes. In most of them were food, water, and basic supplies. Sadly, a lot of the food had gone bad, and they had to throw it out. Whatever they could salvage, they stored in the kitchen. The rest of the crates held things like maps and weapons. They didn't know why these things would be put in a storm shelter, but made use of them anyway.

The maps they posted on the walls of the main chamber. They depicted all of the Dragon Worlds before the change, Avalar, the Forgotten Worlds, and there was one large map of the storm shelter. Then they located a storeroom and put the weapons and empty crates in it. Spyro lit a few torches and handed them around so that they could go all through the shelter and light several of the lanterns in each room. Sabina found a door that led to a smaller hallway. Four doors lined either side of it. Behind each of them she found a long room with two rows of cots. Akiro found some of the alternate exits in the shelter, and marked them on the map.

Finally, it was dark outside. The shelter still needed a lot of work before it could be inhabitable, but that could wait. "Now, I know one of these exits comes out close to the dungeons." Spyro began. "I think it's this one." he pointed at a spot on the map.

"Let's go!" Hunter exclaimed. He shouldered his bow and arrows, Spyro picked up the Tracker Deactivating Gadget, and Akiro held on to a can of white paint he found. "Why do you have that?" asked Hunter.

"I've got an idea. I'll show you when we get there."

"Okay."

They passed through several different hallways and rooms, and eventually walked down one long, dark corridor. Sabina grabbed an unlit torch off the wall and Spyro blew fire on it for her. After a short while, they came to a set of stairs built into the wall. "We're here. Now everyone be quiet. There could be just about anyone waiting for us out there."

Spyro led the way up the stairs and carefully slid open a small door. He peered outside, and then motioned for the others to follow. They were standing ankle-deep in snow, right behind two huge ice crystals. It was a wide, open area, covered with snow and ice. In the middle stood a frozen fountain, and on one side was another store. Several doors and entries lined the walls. "Wow." Sabina whispered. "Is this Vokrath's hideout?"

"No, this is just where he put the dungeons. His hideout's in a different area." Spyro explained. "Come on, we need to go to the Ice Citadel." The dragon hurried across the frozen land to a doorway. They followed him through the tunnel. "All right, here's what you guys need to do." Spyro said softly while they were walking. "Get the guards' attention, and force them to leave the area. Hunter and I will sneak in, see who we can rescue right now, and come out. When it's time to get out of here, we'll let you know."

"How?" asked Sabina.

"One of us will come get you. Here we are." They had reached the end of the tunnel, and were standing at the top of a frozen set of steps, overlooking some type of fortress. There were two open doorways in the wall, each one guarded by a blue gnorc, wielding a sword. "You guys ready?" Hunter asked.

"Just about." Akiro said, opening the can of white paint he had been carrying. "I thought of something that would confuse the guards." he then held the can above his head and poured it on himself. "Ta-daa! Sabina and I now look almost exactly alike!" He began rubbing the paint all over himself to make sure he was completely covered.

"But you're twins." said Hunter. "I thought you looked like each other already."

"Well now we're the same color." Akiro said. "I'm ready."

"Me too." Sabina replied.

"Great! You guys go out first, and we'll follow." Spyro exclaimed. Akiro whispered something to Sabina, and then began to run to the steps. He slid down the stairs and landed in the middle of the courtyard. One of the guards looked up.

"Hey, you!" he yelled. "This is a restricted area, you have to leave."

"And what if I don't?" Akiro yelled back insolently. The guards looked at each other, then back at him.

"Then we're gonna have to arrest you!"

"I'd like to see ya try!"

The guards ran towards Akrio, who in turn ran to a pile of broken doors and hid behind it. The gnorcs ran to the spot and were about to pull the top door off the stack when they heard a voice from behind them.

"Hey, dumb and dumber! Over here!"

They turned to see Sabina, standing in one of the doorways. "There he is!" yelled one of the guards. "Get him!" The guards followed Sabina through the doorway.

"Go!" Spyro told Hunter. The two hurried to the other entryway and ran down the hall. About halfway through, they heard the sounds of more guards approaching. Spyro stopped and felt along the wall. "Hunter, you hold them off. I'll find the door." he continued feeling for a specific crack that would reveal the location of the hidden door. Three guards came around the bend in the hall.

"You!" one of them shouted, drawing his sword. "Get outta here!" The gnorc came charging forwards. Hunter quickly notched an arrow to his bow and let it fly. It hit the gnorc square in the neck. The guard made an awful gurgling sound as Hunter shot a few more arrows at him. The gnorc fell face-first onto the ground, dead. The other two came running to them, with spears and shields. Hunter nailed one of them in the heart, and it died instantly. The other one was now too close to shoot at, so the cheetah punched it in the face as hard as he could. This didn't phase the gnorc much at all. The guard raised his sword and brought it down hard! Hunter quickly held up his blow to block the blade, which sank halfway into the wood. Still holding up the bow and the sword, Hunter kicked the gnorc in the chest, sending him hurling against the wall. The guard dropped his shield on impact.

The guard stood up now, swaying a little, and grabbed his sword. He charged at Hunter, yelling at the top of his voice. "Uh, Spyro? A little help here!" the cheetah shouted. The gnorc came closer, waving his blade. Suddenly, Spyro sped between them and blew flames at the gnorc.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" it exclaimed as his clothes caught on fire. Spyro blew again, and the gnorc shrieked louder. Its skin began to blister all over as the fire consumed the guard. Spyro ran back to the wall and continued searching.

"Here it is!" he exclaimed, shoving his claws into a long crack in the wall and pushing. A panel in the wall slid open, revealing a long, stone hallway.

"We've gotta hurry." Hunter said as they entered the passageway and shut the door behind them. "I don't know how long Akiro and Sabina can keep up the distraction." They ran down the hallway.

* * *

Sabina came to the room at the end of the hall. It was almost empty, except for a few pretty urns and a fox standing in the middle of it. The fox stared at her, surprised. Sabina didn't stick around, and ran through the first door she saw. In the next room she spotted a furnace and darted behind it. The two guards, having been joined by three others, burst into the room. "Where'd he go? Where is he!" they asked each other.

_Idiots._ Thought Sabina. Akiro slipped into the room about then. "Here I am!" he yelled, sprinting across to a large pipe that was sticking out of the wall. "Think you're smart enough to follow?" He jumped inside the pipe and ran. The guards hurried after him.

* * *

They emerged onto a wide series of catwalks. Below them was a large room, where gnorc guards were training. There were groups of guards marching on one end, while on the other end they practiced dueling, archery, and other forms of combat. Four or five gnorcs, obviously Captains, strutted around the catwalks barking orders to the soldiers below. "Hunter." Spyro whispered. "Do you think you can get rid of those guys quietly?"

"Sure." Hunter said, raising his bow and aiming. He waited until the first guard had turned his back and wasn't yelling anything before shooting the arrow. The arrow appeared in the gnorc's back, and the gnorc collapsed. One of the other officers turned around and noticed that his comrade was dead. He opened his mouth to call a warning when he too, fell over with an arrow in his heart. There were still two gnorcs on the catwalks. Hunter aimed at a gnorc on the far side, and fired once more. Then, he aimed at the last gnorc. He was about to shoot it, when it turned and saw them.

"Kill it, quick!" hissed Spyro. Hunter fired the arrow and caught the gnorc between the ribs. Unfortunately, this gnorc was bigger than all the others and the arrow didn't go all the way through him. He staggered backwards and fell over the railing. The gnorc landed hard on the stone floor.

"Intruders!" he gasped as the other soldiers crowded around him. "It's..." the gnorc never finished that sentence. Already, more than half of the soldiers in the room had grabbed their weapons and were on their way out.

"You men, search the Citadel!" ordered a high-ranking officer as he gestured to a group who were fighting to get out the doors. "You over there, search the grounds! I want a dozen of you to stay behind and watch this area! They won't get away!"

The gnorcs charged out of the room, waving swords and yelling. Spyro and Hunter ran across the catwalk to two of the fallen officers. "Spyro, see those three doors down there?" Hunter asked quietly. Spyro pulled a long sword out of the officer's belt and handed it to the cheetah. "Yeah, what about them?"

"None of the gnorcs left through any of them. Maybe one of them leads to the dungeons!" Hunter suggested, pulling a shield off the other guard.

"Maybe, but which one?"

"I dunno." Hunter said as Spyro found another shield on the other officer.

They hurried across the platforms to the other end of the room. None of the remaining gnorcs had noticed their presence. Finally, they reached a ladder at the other end. "You go down first." Hunter said. "I'll cover you." Spyro nodded and began climbing down the ladder.

"Look!" one of the guards yelled, pointing at Spyro. The dragon let go of the ladder and started gliding down. The guards hurried over to him. One guard was running much faster than the others, and was the first one shot down by Hunter. The others slowed, dumbly looking up at the cheetah. Spyro was able to land and blow fire at the two nearest to him. They screamed at they caught fire.

Hunter quickly climbed down the ladder to help. Three guards met him at the bottom. Hunter swung off the ladder, knocking over one of them, and managed to stab another in the chest. The third came running at him. Hunter swung his sword and beheaded him. The first started to get up as Hunter attacked.

Spyro head-butted a guard, knocking back into his friend's spear. The guard dropped his spear, surprised, and the dragon blew fire on him. Another gnorc lunged, sword raised, at Spyro. He suddenly screamed and fell, and arrow in his back. Spyro burned yet another gnorc as he made his way to Hunter. The cheetah was fending off the last two guards when Spyro took one of them out. Hunter then made short work of the last one.

"This door!" Spyro exclaimed, pointing to the last one on the right. He tried it, but it was locked. Hunter grabbed the knob on the door in the middle, but that one was locked too. "It's gotta be that last door." he said.

* * *

Sabina ran through the tunnel and in to another room. This one was empty. She must have come in a little late, if all the guards had already left. She ran across the room to the door, but stopped when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around to see that a guard was holding her. A chill ran down her spine as he glared and raised his sword.

_Shit! I'm gonna die! _Sabina thought, _Think fast, girl..._

"Daddy!" She exclaimed, "You're back from Peru!" The gnorc stared at her like she was crazy. Sabina took advantage of this by slipping out of his grip and hugging his neck as tight as she could. "Me an' mommy were so worried! We though you got run over by an elevator!" The guard tried to pull her off, but she swung around so that she was on his back. She tightened her chokehold and continued to ramble on until the gnorc collapsed. Sabina didn't know if he was dead or unconscious, but she wasn't going to hang around and find out.

* * *

The last door was unlocked. Hunter opened it, and he and Spyro went down the hallway. At the end was another door. They opened it to find a spiral staircase. Spyro pulled a torch off the wall and lit it. Then, they descended down into the darkness. It was a very long way down. At last they reached the bottom and were in the dungeons.

It was a huge maze of cells. There was almost no light whatsoever, and it was dead quiet. All that could be heard was the occasional drip of water. Spyro looked around and saw that there were some places where cell walls had collapsed. He and hunter began walking though the camber. They peered in through cell doors to see who was in there. Some were empty, some held sleeping occupants, and some held people who were obviously dead.

Suddenly, Spyro saw a figure sitting chained to the wall of one of the collapsed cells. He brought the light closer and gasped. It was Elora! Two years down here had taken its toll on her. She looked very emaciated, and her clothes hung in tattered rags on her body. Her hair had grown out long and tangled, and her fur was matted and dirty. Spyro stepped closer and saw the scratches and bruises covering her. He handed Hunter the torch and approached the faun. "Elora?" he whispered.

She didn't reply. Hunter stepped away to give him a moment. Spyro lifted Elora's arm and found the shackle around her wrist. Carefully, he tried to slide it off of her wrist. Her arm was so thin now that all it took was a little gentle tugging. The dragon then pulled the other shackle off too.

"Elora, what have they done to you?" he whispered, brushing some of the hair out of her face. The faun shuddered slightly, signaling that she was still alive. Spyro relaxed a little.

"Spyro?"

The dragon turned to see Hunter, cradling Bianca in his arms. Being here hadn't been good for her either. She too was thin and scarred. Her dress was torn and falling apart, and her hair was now down to her shoulders. Hunter shook his head. "I can't believe this," he said. "Why did they do this?" Spyro stood awkwardly on his hind legs and lifted Elora up. Off in the distance, a loud thud and the sound of footsteps and voices echoed through the cells. "We've got to get out of here." he said.

They were about to leave when they heard a voice calling them. "Spyro? Hunter? Is that you?" A face appeared at the bars of a nearby cell.

"Sheila!" Spyro exclaimed.

"Spyro!" the kangaroo said happily. "You guys finally made it!"

"Hold on a sec, we'll get you out!"

"No, you have to leave." she said, "Hear that? That's the guards coming. If you stick around much longer they'll get you too."

"It'll only take us a second." Hunter urged. Sheila shook her head.

"No! Just go. I know you'll come back for the rest of us." she said again. The voices sounded closer. Spyro and Hunter turned to go the way they had come. "Not that way." Sheila called. "Go to your right, and then turn left at the fifteenth door. It's a shortcut."

"Thanks." Spyro said. "And don't worry. We'll be back as soon as we can!"

They waved goodbye and hurried down the passageway. Hunter counted off the doors. "five...six...seven..." They could hear the voices again, louder now. "ten...eleven..." Spyro, unused to walking on his back legs, slowed down some. "thirteen...fourteen...fifteen! This way!" They ran down the left corridor until they came to a large dumbwaiter.

Hunter jumped inside. Spyro handed Elora up to him and then climbed up himself. He and Hunter pulled the rope and lifted the platform up.

* * *

Akiro ran out the door, panting. Sabina came out too, running into him. "I think we lost 'em." she said. "We're back where we started from! Now where's Spyro and Hunter?"

"I don't know. Should we wait here or try and find them?"

"Hey guys!" They turned to see Hunter standing at the top of the steps. "Ready to go?"

"How'd you get up there?" demanded Akiro.

"Shortcut. Now hurry!" The two tried to climb the steps, but slipped on the ice. "Try running up the railing." Hunter suggested. Sabina hopped up onto the stone railing and walked up, followed by Akiro.

"Who are they?" Akiro asked upon seeing the two very beat-up looking females.

"Guys, meet Elora and Bianca." Spyro said. "Enough talking, we've got to go, now!"

They raced out the door, unaware that there was a figure in the shadows, watching them.

_

* * *

**Whew! Well, this chapter's out of the way. There wasn't a lot of Ember-bashing in this one, but there's still plenty of time for that.**_


	6. Ember Abused

The doors in the training room opened. Ember, followed by a small, green gnorc, entered. She stopped suddenly, staring at the twelve dead guards scattered around the room. She walked around, examining every burned, shot, or beheaded carcass. "What happened here!" she demanded, turning to the gnorc that followed her in.

"Uh...uh...we don't know! There were some intruders in the building and..."

"And you didn't alert me!" Ember shrieked. "What were you thinking? Never mind, I want to know exactly who was in here and how many there were." She was about to say something more, when she heard a groan. She turned to see one of the burned gnorcs moving slightly. Ember hurried over to him. "You! Who did this?"

The gnorc coughed. "Spyro..."

"Spyro?"

"Hunter."

"Spyro and Hunter." Ember muttered. She looked up to see that the doors to the dungeons were opened. "No, they didn't..." The dragon pointed at the green gnorc. "Go down there and see who's missing!" she ordered. The gnorc quickly saluted and hurried to follow orders.

"No need for that Ember."

She turned around to see Flame walking towards her. "I already know what's going on." he said. "Spyro and Hunter came in with their two friends. Their two friends went and led the night watch on a wild goose chase while Spyro and Hunter snuck in and rescued Elora and Bianca."

Ember stared, mouth agape. "How do you know that?" she asked. Flame smirked and motioned for her to follow.

"The question is, how do _you_ not know this? Eh, Miss Commander-in-Chief?"

She glared at him as they walked out the door. "Look, just because I'm a higher rank than you doesn't mean I can pay attention to everything! Oh, and the guards told me that there was only one trespasser they were after, not two."

"I'll tell you what happened." He said. "Those two...whatever they were...that you ran into this morning? Well, the green-furred one dyed himself white, and they took turns distracting the guards."

Ember slapped her forehead. "Don't tell me that those bums didn't notice that the person they were chasing kept changing genders!"

Flame nodded. "It appears so. Those guards are currently being, er, reprimanded in a way, for allowing this to happen." he stopped walking. "Now, what are we going to do about this?"

"I'm not sure." Ember shrugged. "But for now, let's just hope the boss doesn't find out about this."

"_Hope I don't find out about what?"_

* * *

Meanwhile, in the storm shelter, they had taken Elora and Bianca to one of the first aid rooms. "They're messed up pretty bad." Sabina observed. "Look at all those scratches and scars! Some of them are still bleeding!"

"We'll have to get them cleaned up." Hunter said, getting a box of bandages down from a shelf. Akiro found some clean washrags and soap, and he began cleaning the wounds. Hunter began bandaging the largest and freshest scars. Sabina left the room to find some decent clothes for the two girls. Spyro rubbed an ointment into the older scars and bruises.

After a while, Elora and Bianca began to look a little better, now that most of the dirt and blood covering them had been cleaned off. Sabina came back with two cotton nightshirts and, being the only other female, was in charge of getting them dressed while the three other guys waited in the hall. After a while, Sabina emerged from the room carrying the shredded remains of the girls' clothes.

"I guess now we can only wait," she said. "And I think they'll be needing some new clothes if they get better."

"Whaddaya mean 'if'?" Hunter asked, looking worried. Sabina stammered for a moment.

"Um...uh...I mean _when_ they get better."

Akiro turned to Spyro. "So, how long had they been prisoner exactly?" he asked. Spyro sighed.

"Elora was there for about two years, Bianca was only taken one year ago."

"So we just need to wait a while and they'll recover?" Hunter asked. Sabina nodded, patting him on the back.

"Yes. It may take a while but they'll get better. In the meantime, why don't we make this place more livable?"

"Okay." Spyro replied. "If we can free everyone, they'll need a more sanitary place to stay."

* * *

Ember and Flame turned to see who was speaking to them. He was a tall man, with long, ratty brown hair and red eyes. He wore a tan shirt and brown pants under a knee-length black jacket, and he had on leather gloves. Around his neck was a gold medallion with the initials 'VU' carved in bold script letters.

"Well, go on and tell me. I'm waiting." he hissed.

Ember began to slink backwards, but Flame nudged her forwards. She shot him a glare, and then turned to Vokrath. "Well master, you see, um...Spyro and Hunter have...ah...these things happen..." Vokrath continued to gaze sternly at her. She gulped and explained. "We've lost them. They've broken our control and removed their tracking chips. And now they've just broken in and took the rabbit and the faun with them."

The man nodded. "I know. Now come here." Ember took a faltering step forward. "Closer." he repeated. Ember stepped again. Vokrath reached out and grabbed her by the neck. "_If this happens again, it'll be your tail down in the dungeons!" _he yelled. "_I want those two back under my control, or else!"_ He then punted the small dragon across the hall.

"Flame." he snapped. "While Ember sorts this mess out, I want you tracking those two. Find where they are and report to me."

"Yes sir." Flame said. Vokrath turned on his heels and walked briskly down the hallway. The red dragon walked over to where Ember was lying on the floor and helped her up. "Nasty temper he's got, hasn't he?"

She was shaking all over. "Yes. I'd hate to be Spyro when Vokrath gets his hands on him." Flame looked at her quizzically.

"Why?"

Ember looked around, checking that no one was within earshot, and then leaned closer to him. "I really shouldn't say anything about this, but he's got some kind of grudge against Spyro."

"How do you know that?"

"I heard him talking to himself."

Flame looked confused. "Talking...to himself?"

"Yeah, sometimes he goes into that room of his..." Ember trailed off. "Nevermind. We've got work to do. And if anyone asks, I know nothing of this."

* * *

The foursome spent the next week cleaning up the storm shelter. It was hard work, since there was a good six inches of dust on everything and because all the supplies needed to run the shelter were either on the floor in the big room or still in the crates. They managed to restock the kitchen and stack clean blankets on the cots in some of the other rooms, and they found the rest of the medicines that needed to go in the medical rooms.

Spyro and Hunter took turns staying up with Elora and Bianca. The ointments they had used on the girl's wounds proved effective, as many of the scratches and bruises had faded away. Akiro and Sabina didn't say much about them, not wanting to upset their hosts.

It was around noon on the seventh day when they were standing in the big room, wondering what to do with all the empty wooden crates. Akiro heard a noise. He turned to see what it was, and stared. "Uh, guys?" he began. As the others turned around, he didn't need to continue. There, huddled in the doorway, clutching a blanket around her was...

"Bianca?" Hunter asked.

She stood on shaky legs. The rabbit tried to take another step forward but fell instead.

**

* * *

Sorry for the long wait. I've been a little busy. But here's the question:**

**Who else has wanted to see Ember drop-kicked across a hallway?**


End file.
